THE Borderline Speedway is set for another cracking season, with the start date brought forward by two weeks.
Historically the season begins on November 24, but will begin on November 10 to accommodate the 50th Anniversary of Speedway Sedans.
From there will be the usual range of competition, including five sprintcar meetings, the 69th SA Speedcar Titles, the SA Super Sedan title re-run, Formula 500s and everything else in between.
The venue itself is in perfect condition thanks largely to the amount of work that went into it last season prior to the running of the Australian Sprintcar Championships.
The grounds have now settled in well and everything is in place for another good season of racing.
Club president Cary Jennings said he was looking forward to the early start, which showed the history of speedway racing, not just in Australia, but in the Limestone Coast as well.
“Speedway Sedans used to be called Hot Rods back in the day,” he said.
“They formed an organisation – the Australian Saloon Car Federation – which later became Speedway Sedans Australia.
“We have run sedans out at the Borderline Speedway since the early 60s.
“Back then there were some old Austin A40s and FJ Holdens.
“I started in an old FE Holden in about 1968, then the EH was born.
“There were a fair few of them around, then they became Monaros and all the other cars of the day.
“They made up speedway in those days.
“We would have had about 30-40 drivers in this area, so there is a lot of history around here.”
That particular meeting will include Junior Sedans, Production Sedans, Super Sedans, Street Stocks and Classic Sedans.
“We hope to have about 12-15 old cars that ran in the 70s and 80s,” Jennings said.
“One of them is Lindsay Beare’s old Valiant, the pink 46, which is now stationed in Warrnambool.
“We hope that can come over.
“Overall we hope to fill the pits up with about 100 competitors across all the classes.”
From there the sprintcars will arrive, with the SRA round on November 24, which will also see the re-run of last season’s Super Sedan title that was cancelled due to the weather.
“We have been doing the SRA Sprintcars show for a long time,” Jennings said.
“It is an open class race, with mostly 410 sprintcars, but some 360s in the field.
“The Super Sedan titles failed last year because of the weather, so we hope it will attract between 20-25 competitors from around the country.”
The sprintcar events always attract a big crowd, with plenty of local interest for the meetings, as usual.
That includes the likes of Steven Lines, Glenn Sutherland, Jake Tranter and Rory Button, plus Ben and Jack Gartner from Penola.
Jamie Stark is also expected to run a car.
Those Limestone Coast competitors will all compete in Speedweek as part of the World Series Sprintcars competition.
The Easter Sprintcar Trail will finish the season on a high, with the usual fireworks display at the end of the night.
Overall Jennings said the club was looking forward to another big year of racing in what has become known as one of the most picturesque venues in the country, more-so after last season’s overhaul.
That included new corporate boxes, wider viewing areas for spectators, a new racing surface, along with many other extra or improved features.
“The complex at the moment looks fantastic,” Jennings said.
“The grass has been cut and everything looks good.
“Last season was a full team effort – you don’t win awards without being a team effort.
“We were lucky enough to get the track of the year and Bill (Barrows) got volunteer of the year.”
